Do you ever work a full day without eating lunch?

[isthisallnormal]

I'm struggling with vicious anxiety and ended up doing this last week. I couldn't make myself get up, go to buy food, it just all seemed too much and i literally was frozen at my desk. I didn't drink any water or coffee and also couldn't make myself get up and go to pee despite needing too.

Normally I'm a big fan of eating regularly throughout the day so this is very unusual for me. I felt like utter shit, very weird and faint until I came home and grabbed some bread and cheese. I do have quite low blood pressure and wonder if a lack of drinks made that drop.

But it got me wondering - I'm sure I've read about how it's quite common for people to skip lunch or not take any time to eat because they are so busy? And nurses for example often don't get time to eat or pee throughout their shift?

Is it common at your workplace to not have lunch or regular tea or coffee breaks?

If you are too anxious to do regular bodily functions like eating and peeing then you should absolutely share that with your doctor.

No, I am very busy in the day but I feel genuinely ill if I don't eat regularly, shaking, faint, sickly and weak. I suspect there is some kind of blood sugar issue though to be honest. I always make sure I eat even if it's something quick

It is sometimes 3 pm before I can stop - though I don't plan my day to be that way. I have a caseload and work alone all day. Unfortunately, for the past 4 years or so, I've found this puts me at high risk of a migraine, so I definately don't recommend it. I have breakfast at 7. 30.

Skipping lunch every now and then wouldn’t bother me but I can’t comprehend going so long without a drink. I just tend to keep a water bottle on me.

I should add that my previous role was very physical and if I missed even my morning break I'd be taaaalking veeeerrry sloooowley by 1230 😂

I've skipped lots of lunch breaks, but never skipped eating and drinking for a whole day. But I've never worked in a job where it wasn't acceptable to have a drink on the go, so on busy days I have had a protein shake or something to keep me going, as well as a bottle of water on the go. Mostly WFH now so it's not a problem, I take a whole selection of snacks which are quick to eat, and drinks. Although that has its own pitfalls as I'm much heavier now! And still in the habit of having a big evening meal.

@Delatron
My iPad is basically my laptop for teaching, so no, I couldn't 'prioritise' a sandwich over fixing it - I project lessons from it, model on it, annotate text on it. Without it I am left with board pens and no way to easily monitor the 30 student iPads in front of me.
Yes, if I'd made or brought a sandwich I could have eaten that instead of making tea. I didn't do either - see my earlier post.
If I didn't make safeguarding calls, I would be liable to lose my job, as it's a statutory duty. Thanks for knowing how to do my job though

Nope

Yes, I don't eat at all until after work - 4/5pm inwards. I will have a black coffee in the morning, and water throughout the day.

All the time, but I'm a teacher, and in the type of school I work in there's not really such thing as breaks. I run interventions 3 lunchtimes a week and on break duty for two break times. When I'm not actively teaching or on duty we're expected to spend break or lunchtime setting up the classroom, setting out books, printing, squeezing in lesson planning, doing detentions with kids or helping them with problems. Basically lucky if I get to go to one of the two single bathrooms on each floor once per break/lunch, and there's usually kids waiting for me when I get back to my classroom. I got home on Monday and found my lunch in my bag that hadn't even occurred to me.

My fiancé likes fasting until about 4pm anyway and we do this in school holidays but I usually like to try and eat something in the morning if I can.

I'm looking forward to joining my new school that doesn't seem as heinous to work in, as I don't think living with that type of relentless pressure is good for my health. But equally think it can be a legitimate choice if you're drinking lots of water and don't feel like eating until a bit later. Sorry to hear about your anxiety:(

Nobody is telling you how to do your job.

But clearly being organised enough to bring in a sandwich could be helpful for you. Rather than just claiming it’s not possible to eat all day…it is possible to eat. You choose not to for whatever reason.

I often don’t eat at work but I always carry water with me and I tend to have a cup of tea!

Just tell them
I've come out with the most random stuff and it's been helpful
Once it was really bad shin pain. Turns out that's a sign of vitamin D deficiency! If I hadn't mentioned it they wouldn't have tested for it

I've also stood in reception unable to speak and just cried at them and they've helped

Our team of 3(office based) very rarely make the time to go and eat at lunch unless we have a client lunch. 2 of the 3 are numerous diverse. I take meds which suppress my appetite during the day so that affects me wanting to eat as well as us being so busy time flies and I have to stick to strict timings due to being a lone parent.

That's totally unreasonable of your school @ridl14 . I work in a school which at least tries to encourage work-life balance. My HoD actually urged me to think carefully about offering a lunchtime club, because she thinks teachers need their lunch breaks. If my computer broke, I'd make do with books and board pens for the afternoon rather than not eat lunch. Nothing would make me miss lunch!

DH can often have back to back meetings all day so it's not unusual for him to skip lunch and not even have a drink. He wfh most of the time and i feel stressed just being in the same house.

If I'm home and he hasn't emerged by early afternoon I'll plonk a sandwich and tea down next to him but it'll still often go uneaten until 5pm or so.